Walmart (WMT) and Alphabet (GOOGL) have reportedly agreed to a deal to expand the capabilities of Walmart’s drone delivery service. Walmart is expanding its drone delivery options through a partnership with Wing, a unit of the Google-parent. Shares in WMT stock are up nearly 4% on Monday, while Google’s stock is up a fraction of a percent.
Per a Sunday press release, the launch will allow more than 40 million Americans to utilize drones for delivery. Walmart, in partnership with Google’s Wing unit, plans to establish a network of over 270 drone delivery locations by 2027. Additionally, the new service areas will include Los Angeles, St. Louis, Cincinnati, and Miami. Walmart also says more locations are to be announced in the near future.
“Drone delivery plays an important role in our ability to deliver what customers want, exactly when they want it,” said Greg Cathey, senior vice president of Digital Fulfillment Transformation at Walmart. “By expanding drone delivery to new major metro areas, we are helping more customers solve their last-minute needs faster than ever before.” Wing started in the labs of Google in 2012 and became an independent Alphabet business in 2018.
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Walmart has performed well to start 2025, with the Nasdaq recently announcing that the company will be joining its Nasdaq-100 Index. The stock has already rallied over 6% YTD, and is poised for further growth in the coming months. Compared to other dividend stocks, many analysts view WMT as one of the best options on the market. Its growth in the last decade is remarkable, and many forecast that growth to continue.
Wall Street expects a strong climb in Walmart (WMT) shares by the end of this year. Per analysts at BTIG, Walmart’s integrated digital and physical strategy is “delivering value” to customers and shareholders. Additionally, CEO Doug McMillon has positioned the company for continued market share and profit gains despite macro pressures. As a result, BTIG has initiated a buy rating on WMT with a $120 price target. With shares currently trading above $118, that target appears ready to be achieved as soon as this week, paving the way for higher forecasts, such as Tigress Financial’s projection of $130.